Reactor Decommissioning gEmergency Planning Aspects

The 59th Annual Meeting of the Health Physics Societyof the Health Physics SocietyJuly 16, 2014 (Baltimore, MD)

Joe Anderson, ChiefOperating Reactor Licensing and Outreach BranchOffice of Nuclear Security and Incident Response

Termination of License (10 CFR Part 50.82)

• Licensee notifies (certifies to) NRC:– Within 30 days of permanently ceasing operation

– Once fuel has been permanently removed from the reactor vessel

• Licensee submits a Post Shutdown• Licensee submits a Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report (PSDAR) within 2 years of cessation of operation

• Licensee Submits a License Termination Plan (LTP) at least 2 years prior to requesting license termination

• Licensee submits Final Status Survey Report (FSSR)

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Termination of License (10 CFR Part 50.82)

• Reactor Decommissioning is required to be completed in 60 yearscompleted in 60 years.

• Bases: 50 y in SAFSTOR + 10 y DECON

• Radiation Dose Rates reduced to 1-2 %

• Radioactive Waste Volumes reduced to 10%Radioactive Waste Volumes reduced to 10%

• Allows Decommissioning Fund to increase

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Decommissioning Strategies

• DECON – Equipment, structure. etc., removed or decontaminated to a level that permits releasep

• SAFSTOR – Plant placed in a safe, stable condition and maintained in that state until it is subsequently q ydecontaminated to levels that permits release

• ENTOMB – Plant is encased in a structurally long-y glived substance to allow decay until levels permit unrestricted release (not currently available)

NRC Public Website:http://www.nrc.gov/waste/decommissioning.html

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Current Decommissioning Status

• 17 Power Reactors in Decommissioning– 4 Active DECON– 13 in SAFSTOR

• 8 Research Reactors in Decommissioning – 4 Active DECON4 Active DECON– 4 in SAFSTOR– 1 additional to decommissioning in 2014/20151 additional to decommissioning in 2014/2015

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Current Decommissioning Status

Power Reactors in SAFSTOR

• Dresden 1

• Fermi 1 2013• Indian Point 1

• Millstone 1

KewauneeCrystal River 3

San Onofre 2 & 3• Peach Bottom 1

• San Onofre 1

• NS Savannah

PDMSThree Mile Island Unit 2**

• NS Savannah

• GE Vallecitos

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The Future?

• Vermont Yankee announced it will be permanently shuttingVermont Yankee announced it will be permanently shutting down in 2014.

• Oyster Creek (2019) and other small single unit plants haveOyster Creek (2019) and other small single unit plants have been rumored to be considering shutting down.

• It has been speculated that as many as 6 to 12 power p y preactors permanently ceasing operations.

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EP Regulatory Basis

• Regulations require licensee under Part 50 to maintain an emergency plan that meets all requirements

• Current EP regulations do NOT take into consideration reduced consequences associated with potential

id t th t t tl h tdaccidents that may occur at a permanently shutdown NPP

Hi t i ll ti h b d t t• Historically, exemptions have been used to grant regulatory relief on a case-by-case basis

U til ti i i d it d ff it EP• Until an exemption is issued, onsite and offsite EP programs must be maintained and all EP requirements met, including exercises

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Accident Considerations

• After reactor defueled, the traditional accidents that dominate operating plant risk are no longer applicabledominate operating plant risk are no longer applicable

• Risk to public is primarily associated with the spent f l t d i th S t F l P l (SFP)fuel stored in the Spent Fuel Pool (SFP)

• Risk of a SFP accident is lower than accident risk in an operating plant

• Stockpiling KI for distribution is not necessary

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Accident Considerations• Risk of SFP accident dominated by beyond design

basis earthquake– Assuming certain storage configuration and heat decay times, spent

fuel assemblies could heat up if SFP water inventory is lost– Beyond design basis earthquake could challenge SFP liner integrity– Possible oxidation of fuel cladding becomes self-sustaining

(“zirconium fire”)

• SFP studies– NUREG-1738, “Technical Study of Spent Fuel Pool Accident Risk at

Decommissioning Nuclear Power Plants, February 2001” (ADAMS ML010430066)

– SECY-13-0112 (Encl. 1), “Consequence Study of a Beyond Design Basis Earthquake Affecting the Spent Fuel Pool, October 2013” (ADAMS ML13256A342)

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Exemption PrecedentLicensee SFP analyses demonstrating that:

• Applicable Design Basis Accident(s) could NOT pp g ( )result in projected doses to public exceeding EPA protective action guides

• Spent fuel is NOT susceptible to a zirconium fire or sufficient time would be available to take mitigativeactions and if necessary offsite protectiveactions and, if necessary, offsite protective measures on an “all hazards” basis (without detailed REP preplanning)

o NRC previously determined that 10 hours was sufficient time in its evaluation of previous site-specific exemption requestse e pt o equests

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P i ti d d EP i t i il tPrevious exemptions reduced EP requirements similar to Independent Spent Fuel Installation (ISFSI)

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NRC ContactsDoug Broaddus, ChiefDecommissioning BranchOffice of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Bruce Watson, ChiefDecommissioning BranchOffice of Federal and State Materials and g

Division of Operating Reactor Licensingdoug.broaddus@nrc.gov(301) 415-

Environmental Management ProgramsDivision of Waste Management and Environmental Protectionbruce.watson@nrc.gov(301) 415-6221

Joe Anderson, ChiefOperating Reactor Licensing and

Bob Kahler, ChiefInspection and Regulatory Improvement

Outreach BranchOffice of Nuclear Security and Incident ResponseDivision of Preparedness and Response

BranchOffice of Nuclear Security and Incident ResponseDivision of Preparedness and Response

joseph.anderson@nrc.gov(301) 287-9300

robert.kahler@nrc.gov(301) 287-3756

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